# Archive a channel

You can archive channels you no longer plan to use. Archiving a channel:

- Removes it from the left sidebar for all users.
- Prevents new messages from being sent to the channel.
- Prevents messages in the channel from being edited, deleted, or moved.

Archiving a channel does not unsubscribe users, or change who can access it.
Messages in archived channels still appear in [search
results](/help/search-for-messages), the [combined feed](/help/combined-feed),
and [recent conversations](/help/recent-conversations). If you prefer, you can
configure an archived channel to [hide its
content](#hide-content-in-an-archived-channel).

## Archive a channel

!!! warn ""

    Channels can be [unarchived](#unarchiving-archived-channels) only by
    [contacting support](/help/contact-support) for organizations hosted
    on Zulip Cloud, or by your self-hosted server's administrator.

{start_tabs}

{tab|desktop-web}

{relative|channel|all}

1. Select a channel.

1. Click the **archive** (<i class="zulip-icon zulip-icon-archive"></i>) icon
   in the upper right corner of the channel settings panel.

1. Click **Confirm**.

!!! tip ""

    You can also hover over a channel in the left sidebar, click on the
    **ellipsis** (<i class="zulip-icon zulip-icon-more-vertical"></i>), and
    select **Channel settings** to access settings for the channel.

{end_tabs}

## View archived channels

{start_tabs}

{tab|desktop-web}

{relative|channel|all}

1. Select **Archived channels** from the dropdown next to the **Filter** box
   above the list of channels.

{end_tabs}

## Hide content in an archived channel

{start_tabs}

{tab|desktop-web}

{relative|channel|all}

1. Select **Archived channels** from the dropdown next to the **Filter** box
   above the list of channels.

1. Select a channel.

1. Select the **Subscribers** tab on the right.

1. Remove all subscribers.

{!select-channel-view-general.md!}

1. Under **Channel permissions**, [make the channel
   private](/help/change-the-privacy-of-a-channel).

1. Under **Advanced configurations**, remove everyone from **Who can subscribe
   to this channel**, and **Who can subscribe anyone to this channel**. These
   permissions give users content access to the channel.

{end_tabs}

You can also make these configuration changes prior to archiving a channel.

## Unarchiving archived channels

Zulip Cloud organizations that need to unarchive a channel can [contact Zulip
support](/help/contact-support).

If you are self-hosting, you can unarchive an archived channel using the
`unarchive_channel` [management command][management-command]. This will restore
it as a private channel with shared history, and subscribe all organization
owners to it.

[management-command]:
https://zulip.readthedocs.io/en/latest/production/management-commands.html#other-useful-manage-py-commands

## Related articles

* [Edit a message](/help/edit-a-message)
* [Delete a message](/help/delete-a-message)
* [Delete a topic](/help/delete-a-topic)
* [Message retention policy](/help/message-retention-policy)
* [Channel permissions](/help/channel-permissions)